From Fulton to Woodman, Sherman Oaks' French Food Is Moving Beyond Dinner

For most of the last four decades, French food on the east end of Sherman Oaks' Ventura Boulevard meant dinner, with a reservation and a tablecloth. That is changing this fall. Mistral has reopened with a raw bar planned next door. Petit Trois Le Valley serves weekend brunch from 8 a.m. And at the Woodman end, two separate French sandwich projects are moving into position a few doors from each other. On the stretch between Fulton and Woodman, French food is spreading from the dinner hour into the rest of the day.

The stretch, block by block

Here is where things stand on the east end as of late October 2026, listed west from Fulton.

Four of the nine entries are French, and three of those four are new, newly reworked or still on the way. The rest of this post covers what each one adds and when you can go.

Mistral kept its menu and changed its hours of use

Henri Abergel opened Mistral at 13422 Ventura in 1988 and ran it until he retired in 2025. According to Eater LA, restaurateur Jonah Freedman and culinary director Josh Migdal took over in late 2025. They kept the menu unchanged for a while, then closed briefly to refresh both the food and the room before reopening on August 10, 2026.

Longtime regulars will still find their usual orders. In the Sherman Oaks Homeowners Association's August column, SOHA president Matt Epstein listed what made it through the remodel: the tuna tartare, lump crab cakes, house-cured king salmon, the Mistral Caesar, French onion soup, duck and rack of lamb. He also flagged one newcomer, a Mistral Burger. Eater's account adds what is new. A Comté grilled cheese now tops the French onion soup. Mussels come in a broth of sungold tomatoes and gewürztraminer. Steak frites comes four ways, from an 8-ounce hanger to a 24-ounce côte de boeuf for two.

Freedman explained the approach to Eater:

"We really feel like this is an homage to the original Mistral rather than just an updated Mistral."

The dining room now has custom red leather booths, glass chandeliers and artwork by French American painter Guy Buffet. Sommelier Julia Djaoui runs the wine list, and the full bar pours cocktails including the Mistral, made with gin and lemon. As a restaurant, Mistral is still a sit-down dinner. The bigger change is the room being built next to it.

Henri's turns one reservation into two stops

Freedman's next project is Henri's, a small raw bar named after Abergel. It is going into what used to be Mistral's private dining room. As Eater LA described it in August, the plan is oysters and cocktails with raw and cooked seafood, in a space small enough to work alongside the main room. Freedman told Eater how he pictures it:

"I love the idea of someone going and having a cocktail and some oysters over there and then coming next door for their reservation or vice versa."

With Henri's open, one address on Ventura could cover oysters before dinner or a cocktail after it. Eater's fall 2026 openings guide, published in September, listed Henri's projected opening as "Late 2026." No opening day or hours have been announced, so check Mistral's own channels before you plan a stop.

At Woodman, French moves to lunch

The Woodman end is where this matters most for an ordinary weekday.

Petit Trois Le Valley, Chef Ludo Lefebvre's restaurant at 13705 Ventura, is already the earliest French option on the boulevard. Its own page lists daily hours of noon to 10 p.m. and weekend brunch from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. On a Saturday you can get French food on this block before most of Ventura has opened.

Two sandwich projects are now lined up close by.

Lefebvre's corner lease

SOHA's September column reported that Lefebvre signed a lease on the corner restaurant space at Ventura and Woodman, where Samos had been operating. Epstein wrote that it would likely be a sandwich concept, that it was "very early days," and that Lefebvre planned to circle back once he had a clearer vision and a name. Samos had put real money into turning that corner into a Mediterranean restaurant and, by Epstein's estimate, was open about two years.

Cornichon at 13702

Separately, What Now Los Angeles reported on October 7, based on public filings, that a French café called Cornichon plans to open at 13702 W. Ventura Blvd. The filings describe hot-pressed and classic baguette sandwiches, from jambon and Comté to prosciutto, smoked salmon, crispy chicken and vegetarian options. They also list sweet sandwiches, such as chocolate with salted butter or mascarpone with jam, plus pommes frites with a choice of sauces. The applicant named in the filings is Felix Lyubovny.

Nothing published connects Cornichon to Lefebvre's lease, and they are best treated as two separate projects. Neither has an opening date. If both open, the Woodman corner will have a sit-down French restaurant and two baguette counters within a short walk of each other. That would make a weekday lunch the easiest way to eat French on this part of Ventura, which was never true when Mistral was the main option.

The rest of the block leans the same way

The non-French turnover on this stretch points toward daytime too.

At the Fulton end, SOHA reported that a new mixed-use building called Fulton Crossing, with shops on the ground floor and offices above, has gone up across from Casa Vega. A vintage Airstream on the corner marks the site, and Blank Street Coffee is the anchor tenant. By September, Epstein wrote, Blank Street already had a line out the door.

LLAMA, a new play studio at 13443 Ventura, runs art and sewing classes, workshops and birthday parties, plus Grown-Up Nights for adults. Next to Petit Trois, Florahound at 13711 Ventura has taken over the painted storefront that used to be the Green Qween dispensary. It is a rare-plant shop built around the work of master horticulturist Leon Massoth, who grows tropical species you won't find at a typical nursery.

The one departure is a loss for the evening crowd. Boneyard Bistro at 13539 Ventura served its last meal on September 12 after more than 20 years of smoked ribs, brisket and Santa Maria-style tri-tip, according to What Now Los Angeles. In its farewell post, the restaurant thanked everyone who had "celebrated a milestone" there. Owner Aaron Robins has said he is ready for his next chapter. No replacement for the space has been announced.

A French day on the east end, as it stands now

Here is how a day on this stretch could go, using only what is open now:

1. Saturday 8 a.m. Brunch at Petit Trois Le Valley, which serves until 3 p.m. on weekends.
2. Mid-morning. Walk a few doors to Florahound at 13711 and look at the plants.
3. Any day from noon. Petit Trois for lunch, open daily until 10 p.m.
4. Evening. Dinner at Mistral, 13422 Ventura. Ask about the four steak frites cuts or the chocolate soufflé.

Once they open, Henri's would fit before or after step four, and a baguette from either Woodman sandwich project would fit into step three. These are the places to watch through the end of 2026:

• Henri's, next to Mistral, listed for late 2026
• Ludo Lefebvre's corner sandwich concept at Ventura and Woodman, not yet named
• Cornichon at 13702 W. Ventura Blvd, in the filing stage
• 13539 Ventura Blvd, the former Boneyard Bistro space, with no tenant announced

Changes like these shape what a walk down Ventura is like from the homes a few blocks off the boulevard. Mario Acosta tracks this stretch block by block, from Fulton to Woodman. If you'd like to know how your home's location along it compares with recent sales nearby, Mario Acosta can put together a Free Home Valuation for your address.